Originally Posted by ultramarina
So, you have a limit on your total time for the game?


I don't play chess myself, but my brother is an authority on chess ratings, so I get some exposure to it all. My understanding is that you get a certain amount of time per game plus a certain amount of time per move. I don't know what the "standard" is for tournaments - I'm sure someone here does. I know that there are versions where it's just a straight-up time limit on each side (I think five minutes in blitz chess), but my understanding is that there is more time available for deliberation in most tournament games.

Maybe you can find some YouTube videos or something that will give you a better idea of what a tournament is like?